Machine for mending runs in fabrics



R. M. MARKUS Oct. 6, 1931.

MACHINE FOR ENDING RUNS IN FABRICS 1930 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Fil=d July 14 32 lllllll t 'l /4 (f7 U872 Fed v77 M Ma W- T K1 5 Patented 9st. 6, 1931 FATENT RALPH lv'I. MARKETS, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS lvIACHINE FOR MENDING RUNS IN FABRICS Application filed July 14, 1930. Serial No. 467,904.

This invention relates to machines for mending runs in fabrics.

The machine of the present invention is designed for the purpose of mending runs in knitted fabrics, such as hosiery and the like, which runs are occasioned by a release of one of the loops of thread which in turn disengages the next succeeding loop, and so on, so that by the disengagement of the successive loops, the run extends indefinitely and pr duces a ladder effect across the fabric by the straightening out of the unlooped cross threads composing the run.

The present invention is designed to provide means for stepping off the spaces between the cross threads composing the run, and individually and progressively presentingeach of the cross threads to the looping needle, which engages the cross thread and carries it over the next succeeding thread in the form of a loop, and thereafter engages the next succeeding thread and releases the one first looped over, and so on along the run until the repair is complete and the fabric is restored to its original condition.

The machine of the present invention makes use of the ordinary looping needle in conjunction with a pair of fingers, which in turn engage and present the threads to the needle and alternately progress with a step by st p motion along the run.

The invention also relates to the means for feeding forward the fabric at a speed commensurate with the repairing operation, and to the means for co-ordinating and timing the various movements.

Further objects and details of the inven tion will appear from a description of the accompanying drawings, wherein,

Figure 1 is a side elevation of the machine of the present invention with the housing partly broken away to display the interior;

Fig. 2 is a detail showing the feeding mechanism I fig. 3 is an enlarged sectional elevation of the needle operating and stepping mechanism taken on line 3-3 of Fig. 1;

Fig. at is a similar view taken on line 44 of Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 is a sectional elevation taken on line 55 of Fig. 4; and

Fig. 6 is a sectional elevation taken on line 66 of Fig. 1.

The machine comprises a base plate 10, which serves as a mounting for a frame 11 comprising an upper arm 12 and a lower arm 13. The frame and arms are integrally formed, and are cored on the interior to afford space for locating the operating mechanisms.

The upper arm and the lower arm in con junction with one another present a G-sha-ped configuration, and the upper arm at its forward end terminates in an enlarged housing 1% to afford space for the location of the needle operating and stepping off mechanisms.

The lower arm constitutes a support for the fabric and is provided at its outer end with a rounded plate 15 over which the hosiery or other knitted fabric is laid and across which it is fed during the repairing operation.

The plate 15 is provided with a slot 16 which affords clearance for the reciprocations of a looping needle 17 provided at its lower end with a hook 18 and a latch 19 of the kind commonly employed in looping needles of this character.

' The looping needle is operated by an up and down movement of straight line reciprocation, and the needle coacts with a pair of feeding fingers 20 and 21, the configuration of which is best indicated in Fig. 3. Each of the feeding fingers comprises a vertically disposed bar or shank 22, which at its lower end is provided with an offset 23 terminating in a downwardly projecting blunt-pointed tip 24 grooved on its rear face 24?. The two tips operate in longitudinal alignment'with one another, and the configuration of the oppositely extending offset portions 23 is such as to permit the tip portions of the fingers to step over one another by a four-way motion, so that as the operation progresses, each of the fingers in turn will, upon its downward. reciprocation, engage a cross thread of the run and will carry it backward toward the hook of the needle when depressed, while at the same time the companion finger is movpivoted ing upwardly and then forwardly and stepping over the offset of the companion finger in preparation for the engagement and feeding of the next succeeding cross thread of the run.

In order to effect the carrying out and timing of these feeding operations, each of the feeding fingers at its upper end is provided with a rearwardly extending head. plate which overlies a corresponding cam 26, the two cams being mounted upon a cam shaft 27 extending transversely through the head portion 14 of the upper arm 12.

The needle 17 is carried by a reciprocally mounted stem 28, which is bifurcated at its upper end to receive a roller 29 which is held against a cam 30 by the tension of a coil spring 31 which surrounds the stem 28.

The cam 30 is also mounted upon the cam shaft 27, and the head plates 25 are held in Contact with their respective cams by compression springs 31, the tension of which may be regulated by adjusting screws entered through the top of the housing 14.

In order to impart the necessary back and forth movements to the feeding fingers, in harmonious relation to their up and down movements, each of the fingers is reciprocally mounted through a slide block 33 carried by a guide block 34 mounted upon the side wall of the housing near the lower end thereof, and in order to actuate the previously described mechanisms in timed relation to one another, the following connections are provided:

The cam shaft is oscillated by means of an arm 35 which extends rearwardly and downwardly therefrom and is provided in its end with a slot 36, through which is entered a pin 37 which makes connection with a reciprocating rod 38, which is pivoted to the upper extremity of a bell crank plate 39 which is at 40 within the frame of the machine. The bell crank plate is oscillated by a driving arm 41 terminating in an eccentric strap 42 which encircles an eccentric 43 on a power shaft 44, which has keyed thereon a hand wheel 45 which is also grooved to receive a belt 46 driven by a motor 47. The belt is tensioned to a roller 48 carried by a pivoted arm 49 which is acted upon by a spring 50 to maintain the belt under the necessary tension.

In order to permit a sudden stopping of the mechanism, as occasion requires, a shoe brake 51 is provided which bears against the grooved ortion of the hand wheel and is actuated y a lever 52 through the medium of a draw rod 53 which may be operated in any suitable manner, as for instance by means of a foot treadlc or otherwise.

The slide blocks 33 are re *ersely actuated by links 5454, the forward ends of which are respectively pivoted to the slide biocks and the rear ends of which diverge from one anothe and are pivoted to the opposite ends of a centrally pivoted lever fulcrumed on a pin 56 carried by astandard 57.

The cams 26 stand at an angle of 90 to one another and are so configured that each will impart to its corresponding feeding linger a suliicicnt iift to permit the tip 24 to just clear the offset of the companion feeding linger, and the links 54 are so mounteu and actuated that as the currently active feeding finger descends and engages a cross thread in the run it will begin to move rcarwardiy while the hook of the needle is dcprcsxuh thereby drawing the cross thread toward the hook and engaging it therewith as the hook moves upwardly, which instant s the previously engaged cross thread, which has meanwhile slipped above the late will draw down the latch and release its-ll in a manner well understood in the pr art.

In order to draw the stocking or other knitted article to the rear, and to maintain a constant tension thereon during the feeding operation, a feed wheel 58 is provided, which is peripherally grooved in its enter and provided with gear teeth 51) which mesh with a pinion 6h mounted upon a shaft 61 carried between the walls of the lower arm 3 The pinion 60 has formed thereon a bevel faced pinion which meshes with a driving bevel pinion 63 carried by a worm sh it ill which extends through the lower arm 1?; carries at its rear end a worm wheel 1ne.-. ing with a worm 66 on the shaft 4- rangement serves to impart a siow ic-edingzj movement to the fabric coniniensuraic with the reciprocations of the lit Operation The operation may be briefly dcs rilaid as follows: The fabric to be repaired, which for purposes of illustration may be considered as a stocking, is laid over the rounded plate 15 and stretched smoothly in position to expose the run. The presser rolle (3? is lifted to permit the stocking to he proneri disposed in position and then lowers-d to compress the stocking against the feed w eel 58. This stretches out the run and c ily exposes the cross threads to the action o': the needle. The first cross thread is Sllpl iitl beyond the latch of the needle and the mechanism is then started. One of the feeding lid fingers will descend and engage the next cross thread and move it toward the hoolzof the needle, which moves upwardly through the slot 24*, thereby hooking the thread presented by the tip of the feeding finger, and forthwith releasing the thread previously lying behind the latch.

The feeding finger having delivered its thread to the needle moves upwardly and the companion feeding finger simultaneously moves downwardly to engage the next thread and present it to the needle, and this action proceeds until the run has been completely repaired, each downward reciprocation of the needle serving to release a cross thread from the hook and allow it to slip behind the latch, and each upward reciprocation of the needle serving to hook under a new thread and simultaneously permit the release of the thread previously acted upon.

By feeding the individual cross threads to the needle in the manner described, each thread will be independently engaged and presented in turn to the needle, and the step by step movements willoccur under the eye of the operator, so that there need be no skips or omissions in the feeding action. The mechanism is simple in operation and compact in structure, and enables the operation to be performed speedily and with precision throughout.

The provision of the hand wheel is desirable, in that it permits such preliminary manipulation of the needle as may be desirable in the starting and finishing of a run, and at the same time provision of a power feed enables the operation to proceed rapidly under power during the progress of the mechanism along the run.

Although the invention has been described in detail, it is not the intention to unduly limit the claims since modifications in structure may be introduced without departing from the spirit of the invention.

I claim:

1. In mechanism of the class oescribed, the combination of a reciprocally mounted looping needle, a pair of feeding fingers, means for reciprocating the looping needle. and means for alternately actuating the feeding fingers to impart a step by step movement thereto to present successive cross threads to the looping needle.

2. In mechanism of the class described, the combination of a reciprocally mounted looping needle, a pair of feeding fingers mounted to afford a four-way movement, means for reciprocating the looping needle, and means for alternately imparting four-way movements to the feeding fingers to alternately engage and present the cross threads to the looping needle.

3. In mechanism of the class described, the combination of a reciprocally mounted looping needle, a pair of feeding fingers mounted to afford a four-way movement, means for reciprocating the looping needle, and means for alternately imparting four-way movements to the feeding fingers to alternately engage and present the cross threads to the looping needle, said means including cams for imparting alternating vertical reciprocation to the fingers, and linkage for alternately imparting back and forth movements to the fingers.

4. In mechanism of the class described, the

combination of a reciprocally mounted loop ing needle, a pair of feeding fingers, means for reciprocating the looping needle, means for alternately actuating the feeding fingers to impart a step by step movement thereto to present successive cross threads to the looping needle, and a feeding roller for moving the fabric at a speed commensurate with the repairing operations, and a releasable presser roll adapted to bear against the feeding roller. v In mechanism of the class described, the combination of a reciprocally mounted looping needle. a pair of feeding fingers mounted to afford a four-way movement, means for reciprocating the looping needle, means for alternately imparting four-way movements to the feeding fingers to alternately engage and present the cross threads to the looping needle, and a feeding roller for moving the fabric at a speed commensurate with the repairing operations, and a releasable presser roll adapted to bear against the feeding roller.

6. In mechanism of the class described, the combination of a reciprocally mounted looping needle, a pair of feeding fingers mounted to afford a four-way movement, means for reciprocating the looping needle, means for alternately imparting four-way movements to the feeding fingers to alternately engage and present the cross threads to the looping needle, said means including cams for imparting alternating vertical reciprocation to the fingers, and linkage for alternately imparting back and forth movements to the fingers, and a feeding roller for moving the fabric at a speed commensurate with the repairing operations, and a releasable presser roll adapted to bear against the feeding roller.

7. In mechanism of the class described, the combination of a reciprocally mounted looping needle, a pair of oppositely inturned feeding fingers terminating in downwardly extending tips and mounted to permit the inturned portions to be stepped over one another to alternately present succeeding cross threads to the looping needle, means for imparting vertical reciprocations to the looping needle, and means for imparting four-way movements to the feeding fingers.

V 8. In mechanism of the class described, the combination of a reciprocally mounted looping needle, :1 pair of oppositely inturned feeding fingers terminating in downwardly extending tips and mounted to permit the inturned portions to he stepped over one another to alternately present succeeding cross threads to the looping needle, means for im parting vertical reciprocations to the looping needle, and means for imparting fourway movements to the feeding fingers, said latter means including cams for imparting vertical reciprocations to the feeding fingers, and linkage for imparting longitudinal reciprocations thereto.

9. In mechanism of the class described, the combination of a reciprocally mounted looping needle, a pair of oppositely inturned feeding fingers terminating in downwardly extending tips and mounted to permit the inturned portions to be stepped over one an other to alternately present succeeding cross threads to the looping needle, means for imparting vertical reciprocations to the looping needle, and means for imparting fourway movements to the feeding fingers, said latter means including cams for imparting vertical reciprocations to the feeding fingers, and linkage for imparting longitudinal reciprocations thereto, and a feeding roller for moving the fabric at a speed commensurate with the repairing operations, and a releasable presser roll adapted to bear against the feeding roller.

10. In mechanism of the class described, the combination of a O-shaped frame pro vided with upper and lower arms, a rest for the fabric carried by the lower arm, a looping needle reciprocally mounted within the upper arm, a pair of feeding fingers reciprocally mounted within slide blocks carried by the upper arm and terminating in oppositely offset tips adapted to alternately present cross threads to the looping needle, a cam for reciprocating the looping needle, cams for reciprocating the feeding fingers, and linkage for imparting alternate back and forth reciprocations to the slide blocks to impart four-way feeding movements to the feeding fingers, and means for actuating the parts in timed relation to one another.

' 11. In mechanism of the class described, the combination of a G-shaped frame provided with upper and lower arms, a rest for the fabric carried by the lower arm, a looping needle reciprocally mounted within the upper arm, a pair of feeding fingers reciprocally mounted within slide blocks carried by the upper arm and terminating in opposite-- 1y ofi'set tips adapted to alternately present cross threads to the looping needle, a cam for reciprocating the looping needle, cams for reciprocating the feeding fingers, and linkage for imparting alternate back and forth reciprocations to the slide blocks to impart four- *ay feeding movements to the feeding fingers, a feeding roller for moving the fab- 

